This Game Is Making Me Thirsty! - Viticulture Review

Stonemaier Games are on a bit of a roll with me at the moment. A relatively new publisher, but so far they’ve impressed me with their activities. Viticulture was a Kickstarter success, easily making its funding goal and now producing a giant expansion for the game, which I’ll get on to reviewing soon – once I get my copy. Sadly I wasn’t introduced to the game in time for the Kickstarter, but credit where credit’s due, from having participated in the Treasure Chest Kickstarter recently, Stonemaier do a good job of supporting their games and keeping in touch with backers. Euphoria, another of their successful projects, is also a cool and unique game that impressed me more than I expected it to. And I’ve never been so hot in anticipation for a game by the cover alone until Scythe came along…

Thanks to my girlfriend, white wine has been firmly engrossed in my drinking list alongside cider and I’ve developed a particular liking for Sauvignon Blanc. Red will take some more time but it’s getting there. When I looked for a decent game related to this theme however, the list came up woefully short. Farming games in general don’t seem to be plentiful outside of Uwe Rosenberg, but why not? It’s a great theme! Haven’t we got bored yet with selling goods in Europe or building/connecting structures of some kind?

Vinhos seems to be the only major wine contender, but from what I’ve heard, that game is insanely complicated with the client base for who I can teach it to being quite small. Viticulture looks to be a lighter version, attempting to capture the theme of running a vineyard without making the experience too complex or “math-y”. And does it?